a song for you
by Slytherin Buttercat
Summary: When Molly gets the news that her mama is missing, she does not expect the next words her sister would say are 'we're going to find her.' Joined by Frank Longbottom, they go on an adventure to find her missing mama (and many other things along the way). One-shot


**Assignment 1: Ancient Runes Task 2: Write about someone facing his/her fears**

 **Insane House Challenge: (character) Molly Weasley (next-gen)**

 **Sticker Collection Challenge: Hufflepuff: Topaz: (word) affection**

 **I think I'm probably the only person who goes against canon and sees Molly as the younger sibling.**

 **Lucy is in Seventh Year, Frank in Fifth and Molly in Fourth. (there's a part where Frank says he was moved up a year: he was actually moved up two (he practiced charms hard)**

 **Word Count: 3492**

* * *

 **a song for you**

* * *

Molly has always been a timid girl. She is the youngest Weasley cousin, and so everyone treats her like she's a fragile china doll, as if she would break at the slightest push. At this point, it is likely that she will: she flinches at the slightest move and stutters when she has to talk to someone outside of her family. The only reason she is in Gryffindor is because she told the Hat that she doesn't want to stand out, that she doesn't want to be a Weasley outside of Gryffindor because they attract more attention. Her sister, Lucy, is a Ravenclaw, and the school knows her for being the smart daughter of the Deputy Minister for Magic. Her cousin, Rose, is a Hufflepuff and everyone talks to her about it. Another cousin, Albus, is in Slytherin, and the other houses mock him for it: Molly herself doesn't talk to him anymore, but that's not because she's embarrassed by him. He cut off the family at school a long time ago, only hanging out with the boys in his dormitory, and Molly is definitely not going to seek him out on her own.

So when her sister sits on the Gryffindor table one morning, resting her hand on Molly's shoulder, Molly is afraid that people are going to notice her. It is uncommon for a person of a different house to be on a table that is not their own, and the blue on Lucy's robes stand out in the sea of red. "We need to talk," Lucy says, her voice taking on a worried tone.

"Okay," Molly replies quietly, her eyes looking away as the people around her turn to look at them. When Lucy stands up, she adds, "What, now?"

"Yes." Lucy rolls her dark blue eyes, grabbing Molly's hand and tugging at it. "Come on, we don't have all day."

Molly slowly gets out of her seat, her face burning. It is a good thing she does not have the 'Weasley' hair that many of her cousins do, or she would clash. "We _don't_ have all day," Lucy stresses, pulling on Molly's hand so hard that she flies forward a little and stumbles over her feet.

Molly can't do anything more than follow her sister diligently, embarrassment taking over her mind. It feels like everyone is looking at her and she hates it. Lucy pushes open the doors to the Entrance Hall and shoves Molly out before closing them again. "Mum has been kidnapped."

Molly coughs, the air getting caught in her throat. "What?" she asks, her blue eyes widening.

"Mum has been kidnapped," Lucy repeats, her hands running through her hair.

"Wh—why? What? How do you know?" Molly's words are a mess and her mind is jumbled up.

"Dad told me. I'm not meant to tell you but I couldn't keep it a secret any longer."

Molly pushes her glasses further up her face. "Do you—do you know where she is?"

Lucy scoffs slightly. "Of course not, Dummy." Molly lets out a shuddering breath, and Lucy seems to sense her fear as a hand cups Molly's shoulder. "That's why we're going to go and find her."

"We're going to what?"

A passing Hufflepuff turns to look at them at the sound of her raised voice, and Molly recognises him to be the Longbottom boy. Lucy watches the boy too. When he doesn't move, she waves her hands at him in a shoo-ing motion, saying, "Scram, kid."

The Longbottom boy rolls his eyes at her, making his way over to them. Lucy crosses her arms, glaring at the boy. "What do you want?" she asks, her tone sharp.

"I heard you talking." Not a good sign when a boy says that, her mama always says, because it means he is a nosy bugger. "I want to help." Her mama never says anything about what to do when a boy says that, however.

"Bloody Hufflepuffs," Lucy mutters, throwing her hands in the air. "You have nothing to do with this, kid. Run along now."

"Oh, I don't think I can do that." The Longbottom boy grins, showing pearly white teeth. "You see, I know what you're about to do, and if you send me away then I will just tell Professor Flitwick what you're going to do. Or maybe even my father."

Longbottom… Professor Longbottom is her Head of House, and he is quite strict when it came to following rules. Molly tugs on her sister's robe, looking up at her hopefully. "We could use help?" she mumbles, her voice squeaking on the second word.

Lucy rolls her eyes. "Fine. Come on then, kid, let's go somewhere more private." She starts to walk away, her hair bouncing on her back.

"Mm, not the first time someone has said that to me," the boy counters, and Lucy groans as Molly follows them, slightly startled by the easy way he says those kind of things.

* * *

They decide to go looking for their mum later that night. Molly still isn't the keenest on the idea, but the Longbottom boy—Frank—seems excited by the prospect of an adventure. Maybe he should have been in Gryffindor instead of Molly. Lucy has bitten her nails down to the point where it looks like it hurts, and she seems to be nervous as they split up later to go to their lessons, although Molly doesn't know whether it is due to them breaking millions of school rules or something entirely different.

Molly does want to find her mother and save her. She just isn't sure if she's brave enough for it.

Later that evening, Molly meets her sister and Frank next to the Black Late. Curfew hasn't started yet, and so it wouldn't be too unusual to see them out here. However, it is unusual for a student to have their backpacks so late into the day, as they are usually deposited into dorm rooms after their last lesson. It is even more unusual to see Molly with a broomstick in her hand: she hates flying and tries to avoid it as much as possible, and everyone knows that. "Are you ready?" Lucy asks, her voice solemn.

"Is this a good idea?" Molly timidly says, clenching and unclenching her fists to calm herself down. "Aren't the Aurors out looking for Mama anyway? Can't we just let them do their job and not get in the way?"

"No!" Lucy shouts, startling Molly and causing Frank to wobble from where he is crouched, doing up his shoelace. "I mean, you can stay here if you want to: I just thought that since we know Mum better than any Auror's we will be able to find her better. I don't need you to help me, though: the kid will be enough help."

Frank looks up, his light blue eyes searching Lucy's face. "Sure," he replies, giving up with the shoelace and leaving it untied. "I'm strong enough to protect myself."

Lucy takes a deep breath in. "Let's go, then," she says, holding her head up high. "We haven't got all day."

Molly doesn't want to do this, but she doesn't want to be left behind either, so she gets onto her broom despite the fact that her heart is in her throat. On the count of three, they all lift up from their brooms and are in the sky, flying higher and higher. Molly doesn't dare to look down, so instead she looks straight ahead at Frank's blond head. They travel for several exhausting miles, and they seem to never be stopping, until Lucy pulls down into a forest. She starts pulling a tent out of her bag as Molly and Frank reach the ground, and Frank rushes to help her whilst Molly clutches her sides, taking in heavy breaths to calm the pounding in her heart. She checks her watch: it's almost ten at night. As she looks up, she sees the tent up completely, and Frank is looking at her, his head to the side. "Are you okay?" he asks, his eyes looking like he is genuinely concerned.

Molly wants to ask him what he's doing there, why he decided to invite himself along, what he thinks is going to happen, but instead she just says, "I'm fine."

"Come on, then." He opens the tent flap and Molly follows him inside slowly, her mind whirling.

Lucy sits at one of the tables in the tent, the wooden structure covered with maps and post-it notes. "What you doing?" Frank questions, sitting on top of the counter in the corner.

"I'm trying to find whereabouts my mum is likely to be. I think it will be somewhere in magical England, as only a magical person would kidnap the wife of the Deputy Minister." Lucy sniffs, seeming to be attempting to clear her nose. "If we start on some of the more well-known places, I think we can find her."

"Are you sure?" he counters, leaning back on the tent wall as much as he can. "She might be anywhere in the world."

"No, I did a spell and she's definitely in England," Lucy replies after a moment's hesitation. "I know what I'm doing, don't worry."

This does nothing to ease Molly's worries, and Frank voices her thoughts. "Just don't question me and we'll be fine," Lucy snaps, slamming the map to close it. "I'm going to get ready to sleep now: we've got a long day tomorrow."

Lucy leaves the others alone in the kitchen part of the tent. Molly stands awkwardly as Frank starts to eat a packet of crisps that he has pulled out of his pocket. "You're Lucy's little sister, right?" he questions.

She feels like she's under an interrogation. "Yeah." She takes a deep breath in, trying to steady herself before asking a question of her own. "D—do you know my sister?"

"Yeah, I'm in her Charms: Professor Fitzgerald moved me up a year in that. She's the only one that doesn't look down on me because I'm younger."

"They look down on you because you're a loser," Lucy calls through the walls.

Molly has never thought that her sister has many friends: she must be wrong. The only person Lucy teases like this is Molly: not even Rose, Lucy's closest cousin, is spoken to like that. Not that Molly is that concerned. Frank just snorts, throwing the empty packet on the counter. "Your sister has the right idea," he says, jumping off the counter. "Have a good night sleep."

Molly follows their lead, and is soon lying on the sofa, a thin blanket wrapped around her shoulders. It could be worse, she decides as she falls asleep.

* * *

A few days later, Molly is standing outside an abandoned building, slightly hyperventilating. The places that they have already looked at are normal, busy places: not a murderers hotspot. Lucy thinks this place is a good place to look, however, and Frank is down to explore anywhere.

"It'll be fine," Lucy says, holding onto Molly's hand with a soft sort of affection in her eyes.

"What if I die?"

"What, do you think a cobweb is going to choke you?" Frank jokes, but Molly shudders and Lucy glares at him. "Oh, you do."

Molly downs the rest of the bottle of water in her hands and shakes her arms. "I—I'm fine," she murmurs, her voice croaky.

"Let's go," Lucy replies, directing the younger two into the house.

Molly looks around warily. The room is dark: the candles that line the room unlit and a few cobwebs covering the corners. Multiple cracks are in the ceiling, threatening to break at any moment. Molly reaches for a hand and accidentally grabs Frank's, but he squeezes it reassuringly enough. She hardly knows him, yet he is very nice. "Come on," Lucy demands. "Let's explore this place and then get out."

She leads the way, Molly letting go of Frank's hand as she follows them. The whole house is dark and mysterious and she hates it. She hates herself for letting her sister drag her into this and she hates the fact that they haven't found her mama. Her sister wanders off at one point and leaves Frank and Molly alone to search the house, leaving a strained silence behind with her. One wrong step leads to Molly losing her foot through a hole in the floor, and her scream echoes through the empty house as Frank grabs onto her elbow. Her foot dangles for a moment before he pulls her back up. "Thanks," she says sincerely.

He just shrugs, pointing the torch in different directions around the room. "She's not in here," he says after a while.

"Yeah," she replies, clutching the side of her robe.

"Hey, guys, I found something!"

Frank and Molly run to Lucy faster than she thinks is possible. "What?" Frank asks as they walk into the room, holding onto his sides as if he ran too fast.

"An antique watch," she says smugly, holding it out. "This could make a pretty Galleon."

"You're rich enough already," Frank replies. "Your dad is the deputy Minister."

"I might need more money, one day." Lucy looks down at the floor. "Hey, Mols, can you look in this jewellery box for me?"

The cobweb-covered contraption is passed to Molly and she stares at it dumbly, trying to slow her breathing. She hates spiders. The little eight-legged things creep her out. The box shakes as she attempts to open it with one hand, and when it finally springs open a cloud of dust fills her nostrils. She coughs, choking on the small particles, but places a hand in the box and pulls out cold necklaces and rings. "I wonder whose they were," Frank says, taking them out of Molly's hands. "Are you ready to leave now?"

Lucy nods in the light of the torch, and they continue out into the night, preparing for their next day of travelling. Molly doesn't know how long it will be before they find her mama, but she hopes it's soon: she doesn't know how much longer she can handle this for.

* * *

A month has passed and they are no closer to finding her. They have spent more time stealing from old and abandoned houses and saving the odd Muggle from a torture session than actually looking for her mama. Molly is tired and she feels disgustingly sweaty. Sometimes, she feels like leaving Frank and Lucy and making her way back to Hogwarts, but then Lucy runs to her excitedly with a new trail or Frank starts telling her a story about his House and she wonders how she ever thought of leaving them.

She walks out of the bathroom one day to see Frank at the table, a newspaper open in front of him. "What's up?" Molly asks, sitting next to him.

"Have you read a newspaper in the past month?" His eyes are wide and it worries her.

"No, why?"

"I don't think your mum is missing."

Molly's heart stops. How could her mama not be missing? Lucy told her that she is, and Lucy doesn't lie. Why would she lie about their mama being missing? "What?"

"Just read this." Frank pushes the newspaper towards her.

She skims the article with her eyes. It is about how the Deputy Minister and his wife are missing their two daughters. There is an additional comment on how Professor Longbottom asks people to find them. "Oh Merlin," she whispers, handing the paper back to Frank.

"This isn't good," he replies, running a hand through his hair. "I thought we were looking for your mum, so I wasn't too worried about how my pa would take me being missing: I thought I was doing a good deed." He looks down at the ground, and Molly thinks he's trying to hold back tears.

"We can go back," Molly suggests, her voice low. "We can explain that it was a mishap. We never meant to scare anyone."

"I—I don't know." Frank's voice cracks: normally it makes Molly laugh, but the situation is too serious now. "It might not work. My pa would be so pissed, and my sister Ally wouldn't understand."

"What's going on?" Lucy asks, walking into the tent. "I think I have a new link!"

Molly turns to look at her sister. Thoughts rage through her head and she doesn't have the courage to say any of them. Frank does. "Is it at your house?" His voice quivers with barely contained anger. "Because if it's not, I don't think we're going to find her."

Lucy stares at them blankly. Her hand drifts down to rest on her stomach as her eyes widen in realisation. "What—what do you mean?" she stutters: Lucy is never one to give up the game too easy.

"We know that your mother was never really missing." Frank lays a steady hand on Molly's trembling shoulder. "We want to know why you sent us on a wild goose chase across the country to try and 'find' her."

Lucy's lip shakes and Molly has to walk over to her to take an unsteady hand, even though she shouldn't be comforting her. "I—you didn't have to come along," Lucy finally gets out, squeezing Molly's hand so hard that it hurts.

"I thought we were finding your mother!"

"I thought that it would just be me and Molly against the world," she shoots back, her hand flying out of Molly's and into the air. "It's always been like that, hasn't it Mols, us defeating evil? Nothing has to change?"

"I've never been good at this fighting evil stuff," Molly replies, pushing her glasses up her nose. "But why would anything have changed?"

"You've been so good this past month," Lucy gushes, grabbing one of Molly's hands with her own trembling ones. "You've helped with so many things!"

"What I still don't understand is why you lied about your mother being missing," Frank cuts in, crossing her arms.

"I—I…" Lucy closes her mouth, looking down at the ground. "I did something stupid."

"What, worse than lying about your mother being missing?"

Molly winces at the tone of Frank's voice, although his anger is expected it is still rather scary. "Worse than that." Lucy takes a deep breath in, before saying, "I'm—well—pregnant."

"You're what?"

Frank just lets out a low whistle. "Explains a lot," he mutters, and doesn't elaborate any more.

"I never meant for this to get so out of hand!" Lucy says, her voice edging on the tone of pleading. "I only wanted to have a laugh, ya know, before the baby ruined my life. I just wanted it to be like it used to be, just me and Molly against the world. Of course, you came along and changed the plan a bit, but…"

"It all makes sense now," Frank says lightly. "The sickness, the worry about money: hell, even why you never let us read newspapers!"

"I'm sorry." Lucy leans back on the counter, resting her head in her hands. "How are we going to fix this?"

"We?" Frank echoes, but seeing the exhausted look on Lucy's face makes him just shake his head.

"I—I think I know a way," Molly says, and Frank and Lucy listen in varying degrees of doubt as she tells them.

* * *

Molly walks through the door to her home, leading Lucy and Frank to the lounge where they find her mama and papa sitting on the couch. Her papa looks up at the sound of the door opening, and at the sight of Molly his whole face brightens up. "My little girl!" he says, rushing over to Molly and wrapping his arms around her. His nose screws up when he takes a proper whiff of the layer of grime and sweat on her. "Where have you been?"

Molly's heart pounds. She can do this. She can. "Do you know where Professor Longbottom is?" she asks, her voice shaking. "I think he needs to hear this as well."

So they all sit around the dinner table as Molly tells them about how they were out looking for hidden treasures. She has read it in a story that that was what her Uncle Harry did for a year, or that is what she tells them, anyways. However, she says that she told her sister that they were going to look for missing people, and the Noble Frank came with them because he wanted to help people. She doesn't mention her sisters pregnancy or how her sister lied to them for a while. By the end, her parents are crying and her mama is blindly reaching to cuddle her daughters and Frank whispers in her ear that she has done the right thing.

Her heart is pounding: she hates lying and is afraid of getting caught. But if that's what it takes to help her sister, then she will do it until she dies.

* * *

 **I'm not sure if I like how this ends but I like the concept. Basically lucy finds out she's pregnant and has a major freak out. She can't cope with school n stuff so makes up a lie that will make molly go with her. Frank overhears and wants to help find her, and lucy can't admit that it's a lie so lets him help. She was going to admit about the lie after a week but has too much fun and instead finds more places to explore, not letting them into a shop that sold magical newspapers in case they found out about her lie. However, Frank finds a newspaper one day and pockets it, only to read it back at the tent and find on page four that they are missing and Audrey is not.**

 **~Buttercat**


End file.
